


His Last Goodbye

by PaleEmeraldNebula



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-07
Updated: 2013-11-07
Packaged: 2017-12-31 18:31:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1034998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PaleEmeraldNebula/pseuds/PaleEmeraldNebula
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At the end of all things for the Doctor, he wants to see her one last time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	His Last Goodbye

Everything ends, just like they begin. It’s a never ending cycle, a process of life that the Doctor knows only too well. He is dying. Not regenerating, not healing, not changing all his cells in his body, he is finally properly dying.

He fell to his knees, clasping a clawed hand to his chest, in the space between his hearts. The ground was soft; a mushy paste that formed to his body. He could let it end here, on a planet devoid of sentient life. Moments ago he had saved the multi-verse for the very last time on this lonely planet, hidden from all of space and mostly time. It would be fitting for him. It was a good grave.

A shiver ran through his body and he shook his head. Placing both hands on the grey mud before him he spread out his fingers, feeling the sticky building blocks of the planet, pulsing with life. His eyes scanned the dull sky and the empty horizon. This place was a lonely tomb for a lonely man. Looking down at the ground again, his hands twisted into fists, squeezing the clay between his fingers. He pushed up, forcing a groan down his throat. Standing, he stared at the old and battered TARDIS just beyond the gloom. Gathering his almost nonexistent courage, his strength, and his force of will, he dragged himself forward.

He could push back his own death for his own goodbye song, something he did once long ago. Then he had called it his reward. This wasn’t a reward, only a simple last request. He was a selfish man and before he finally went on to that big metaphorical cloud in the sky, he wanted to see his friends, and whatever was left them, his family too. If he had to break one or two rules to do so, so be it. He always hated rules anyway.

Opening the blue wooden doors to his ship, the Doctor heard her hum weakly. The song of the universe was fading from her halls. His ship was dying with him. Agonizingly slow, he made it to the console. Leaning closer to the time rotor, he stroked her gently with muddy fingers. She didn’t want her grave to be on this silly little planet. He knew where she wanted to go for her rest. He murmured a silent promise and began his work.

Through hours and clever planning, the Doctor went to see each person that ever held his hearts. Most didn’t know his new, daft, and very old face. He could chat and joke with a few and they never knew. A few recognized him just by his eyes and the way he talked. It was bit awkward when that happened but it warmed him nonetheless. Some he knew he could never talk to, but had to see from afar. Some had to stay in his memories.

When he had seen all but one, days (subjective to him, of course, he always went by either Gallifreyan or Earth days) had passed for him. The Doctor couldn’t hold on any longer. He was merely hours away from finally breaking down and giving in to the peaceful respite that death gave freely.

Back inside the TARDIS he prepared two letters and shifted through his memory for the right time to meet his last goodbye. When he finally knew where and when to go, he pulled down a lever, hard, on the console. After a jolt and a rocky landing, tears began to wet his cheeks. He didn’t dry them. Instead he stroked the TARDIS again, feeling every curve and bump on her battered surface, the hot metals and cold controls. He whispered all his love, every emotion that he deemed relevant in every language he felt worthy to give, and then went through her doors one last time.

Walking under the red sky of a brilliant and bright planet, near a colorful nebula that shined down on the planet’s surface, the Doctor felt a tingle on his skin that told him that this was definitely the place for his final bed. He stopped and turned, letting his eyes gaze on his most faithful companion. The TARDIS shone with utter beauty, even with death so close to them both. He nodded and lifted his arm, pointing his sonic screwdriver at her. He pressed it once and for the last time, he listened to her voice, whirling and wheezing as she jumped back into the vortex, making her way to her final landing.

The Doctor then began to make his way, slowly, with each step more painful than the last, into the village just beyond the hill before him. Oh, he was being so very selfish.

~VVVVVV~

Rose Tyler was properly lost, in an alien village no less. Of course she wandered off from the Doctor, he was always too engrossed with this or that to pay attention. That was fine; because she always found him again or vice versa and they would be off. Unfortunately she hadn’t seen or heard from the Doctor in the last thirty minutes. There hadn’t been any signs of danger or whispers of someone imprisoned for some outlandish reason, so she wasn’t worried about  _that_. She bit her lip and continued on.

The dirt road below her feet glittered red and the signs of the shops rotated in blinding nonsensical colors, contrast to the dreary material that made up the buildings. The smells that wafted on the air either left Rose pinching her nose and breathing in deep. She stopped to look at a kiosk full of glowing neon fruit, thinking about marmalade and the recent trip to see the 2012 Olympics, when she caught sight of an older man staring at her. He was holding onto a wall of a nearby house as if he would fall at any moment. Worry flooded her system and she went to him. He tried to straighten his posture as she grew close.

“Hello.”  She choked on the word, there was something about this wrinkly old man that put her on edge.

He smiled at her, with a goofy grin that didn’t fit his face, “’ello!”

“You alright? Do you need assistance or something? You look dead on your feet.”

“Oh, that seems about right. And yes, I do. Need assistance I mean.”

“How can I help?” She hesitated then, “You’re not some dirty old man are you? Or looking to cause trouble? Because I can tell you right now-”

He cut her off quickly, his eyes darting around the street. “I never go looking for trouble really, no. Trouble always finds me. It’s not my fault.”

Rose let out a small chortle and scooted closer, his reply had relaxed her with its familiarity. She let the old man shift some of his weight onto her. “You sound like a friend of mine. So where to?”

“Over there.” He pointed to a far off hill, right outside the village, with a lonely barren tree.

She looked at the place he wanted to go and furrowed her brow. “Why there? Shouldn’t you go home? Or to a hospital or hospice or a care center of some sort?”

“No. Not me. I’m dying. I’d like to die on that hill.”

She shifted to look at him, her eyes wide, taking in his whole appearance. He wore clothes she was sure wasn’t from this planet, an old assortment of a black suit and vest, but no coat. He wore brightly colored cowboy leather boots that didn’t really match and his hair was long, white, and tied together in a braid. His every breath seemed labored and his skin looked like it would either vanish or slip from his bones. “Should be with family then, where are they?”

The old man paused, gazing at his feet. Softly he whispered, “I wish I could. There’s no else but me.”

That confession made the hair on her skin stand straight up. “Who…”

She never got to finish her question as he turned slightly to take her hand in his, shifting his weight onto his own feet. He leaned closer and their eyes locked onto one another. “I’ve done this before. When we first meet, oh so long ago, and I said to you one thing, one thing only,” he swallowed a breath, “‘run’.”

 She held back the sudden tears that sprang into her eyes. “Doctor?”

“That’s me, yes!”

She quickly put an arm around him, holding him up. Almost absentmindedly they began to walk; her mind was filled with too many scenarios to explain why the Doctor was in such a state. He directed their steps as she concentrated on keeping them upright. “What’s happened? We weren’t even separated that long. And can’t we go to the TARDIS, she could help, couldn’t she?”

“Come on Rose! Use that big, beautiful brain of yours!” The older Doctor’s voice bounced and they had picked up their pace.

She studied his growing smile. “You’re not my Doctor.”

He leaned in to her side more fully, pressing his shoulder closer to hers. “I’m always your Doctor. But that explanation works for this. I’m from the future, yes.”

“How long…how long has it been?” That question held a multitude of questions, but she hoped he would answer the one that was most pressing for her.

“Many many, far too many, years. A couple hundred, a couple thousand?”

That told her enough. No matter what had happened, she wasn’t with this future Doctor. They were out of the town now, making their way up the hill to the dead, blackened tree. “I don’t understand, can’t you just regenerate.”

“Time’s up, no more regenerations for me. I’ve used them all.” His voice was smooth and strong. It deepened when he spoke next, reminding her of leather and a burning world. “Everything has a time and everything dies. It’s my time now.”

“So this is it? How many regenerations can you have? Can’t you get more of them?” Her voice croaked as unchecked emotions tore at her throat.

“Yes, twelve, and no. And if I could, I don’t wanna. It’s time. I’m tired and old.”

She looked at his face again and wondered what his life had been like without her. He no longer looked pained. His brows were relaxed and his mouth curved into a slight, contented smile. He really meant it; he wanted to die, now, with her.

Finally reaching the top of the hill, they stood silently as a warm wind raced by them, causing the branches of the tree to sway in an eerie song and dance. He then turned and placed both his hands on her shoulders. He stared into her eyes with the serious intensity she had come to know with fondness.

 She spoke before he could. “What can I do now? You’re dying and there has to be something I can do!”

He stared at her with a hard and pleading expression. “There is. Rose, I’m a very, very selfish old man. I should have died days ago, but I had to see the people I loved one last time, everyone that had touched my hearts over all my years.”

“But you said you wanted to die on this hill.”

“Yes, because you’re the last. My last goodbye. And I so very much wanted to die in the arms of the woman who…” He sighed and blinked, searching for words. “I never believed in destiny Rose, or fate. But you, ah, well, you, in all my years…Rose Tyler, you are my shining star, the person who, well, I want- I want to die being held by the love of my life, the person who I think of when I hear the question ‘What if’ and would you please do me the honor?”

Her tears had escaped though she didn’t wipe them and he made no move to do so for her. She didn’t want to look away for even a moment. He had never said, in so many words, how he felt about her, and most nights, when her Doctor held her close, skin to skin, she felt she knew. Now here he was, old and alone, and wanting to die being held by her. She should be mad at him, but looking at him now she couldn’t deny him. “O-Of course.”

“Can we lie here, on the grass? Not apple grass unfortunately.”

“Yeah. Um,” She backed away from him so he could move into a position that seemed the most comfortable. She reached for him when he lost balance and guided him down. “How do you want-?”

She left the question hanging, unsure how to even deal with this situation. He had spread out his legs, lying on his back. She followed his gaze up and found a starry day sky that was tinted with variant reds. She sat next to him, trying to figure out what do next. She didn’t have to wait long. His arm visibly trembled as he propped himself up on an elbow and turned to her. “Could I rest my head on your lap?”

Unable to find her voice, she shifted so she sat up against the tree and he gently placed his head on her folded legs, his eyes still focused on the sky. He reached for her hand and placed it on his chest between his hearts, then covered her hand with both of his. She felt the dimming, weakening beats below her palm and it became suddenly all too real. “Doctor, why now and here? Isn’t this breaking some sort of time rule?”

“Hmm?” He shifted his head slightly to look up at her. “Oh, well, yes, I suppose, but I remember this. You were gone for hours and I was beginning to feel terrified that something happened to you. Especially when I found you so upset. You never said, but when I think back on it now I understand what happened.”

“So this was always so supposed to happen?”

“Seems that way.”

She could ask why he didn’t go back to her when she was dying, so they could die together, but that would give too much information away and she knew he couldn’t tell her the future. Instead, she tried to think ahead. “Wh-what happens after-?”

“When I pass on? I have two letters in my vest pocket. One for you to open with instructions for my body and the other,” His voice turned firm and grave, as if talking about his bodily remains had been talking about puppies, “That letter you must only open when you find yourself on a Norwegian beach with your family.”

She wanted to ask what that meant, instead she nodded. “Alright.”

He continued on, still stern. “Keep that letter with you at all times, in your pocket of your jeans, everyday. You got that? Every day keep that letter with you. And don’t, under any circumstances, tell anyone about this, especially me.”

She couldn’t help but smile at him now. “Didn’t you already say I never spilled your secret?”

“Yes, but just in case.”

“Roger that, Sarge.” And just like that he broke out in a wide grin that finally matched his face. She took in a deep, shaky breath and began to stroke his hair.

He closed his eyes and his grin calmed to a soft smile. Another gentle breeze twirled about and the sky began to grow slightly darker, taking on a crimson hue.

“How old are you now?”

“Ugh…what age did I tell you I was again?”

“Nine hundred.”

“Really? Oh, eh, I can never remember my age honestly. But from your perspective I’ve been around the universe for about twelve thousand years now, give or take a few millennia? I think I was about six thousand when I met you.”

“Seriously? You lied about your age to me?” She wanted to smack his arm and laugh at him for such a silly, human thing, but she refrained.

“I didn’t lie, I just didn’t pay attention, or well, perhaps I forgot.”

She could see it form on his face, a laugh and smile, but his breath hitched and he gasped. “What? What’s wrong Doctor?”

“Just keep stroking my hair and tell me one of those inane stories of yours about growing up on the Powell Estates, one that you wouldn’t tell me otherwise.”

She ignored the  _otherwise_. “Inane? I thought you enjoyed those stories?”

 “I do. It’s just-,” He closed his eyes and shifted slightly, still keeping her hand on his chest, “soon, I’m going soon.”

Words stuck in her throat and she forced back a sob. She focused on thinking about all the really embarrassing stories she never wanted to tell the Doctor and decided on one to tell him now. “Years back, right before I met you, I was convinced Shareen wanted to ask this bloke out from our building. So I made a dinner date at this place, at this restaurant that was a bit, well, skeevy, though in my defense I knew he liked it. So I pulled Shareen along and, boy, did she complain!” Rose laughed at the memory, forgetting for a moment where she was and who she was with, when she felt the Doctor slacken.

He sighed once, golden flecks of dust escaping in his last exhale, and gradually his hands dropped, releasing hers from his chest. His hearts were no longer beating.

“Doctor?” She placed his head gently on the ground and moved beside him, patting his face, trying to wake him up. “Doctor!? No, don’t do this to me. Doctor!”

He didn’t move or react. His eyes were closed and his face held a peace there that Rose had never seen before on the Doctor, even when he slept, rare as that was, he never looked this carefree and unburdened. She clasped a hand over her mouth, pinching her eyes shut, when she realized what that look meant.   

Slowly, with trembling hands and focused eyes, she reached into his vest pocket and pulled out two paper letters. One was labeled  _For After_  and one  _For Later_. Instinctively she knew which one to open. She unfolded the letter labeled  _For After_  and was hardly surprised to find that she was correct. Even after six thousand years, the Doctor still thought and did things the same as he always did. Or perhaps he had reverted to his earlier habits for her sake.

She scanned the letter, reading the instructions carefully before paying the most attention to the quickly, haphazardly written note in fresher ink on the bottom. He had properly planned and prepared everything for her in advanced. A village boy was waiting just beyond the hill for her call to help move the body to the funeral pyre, already properly built and waiting. The Doctor in his letter insisted that she burn his body, leaving not one trace of it left. He didn’t want a grave stone or marker, but to let his ashes soak into the ground, to become part of the planet and one day, billions of years later, to be part of the universe once again.

He mentioned that he took care of his TARDIS and not to worry about her.

The Doctor’s last piece of instructions was for her to sing him to sleep. He wrote the alien lyrics down using English letters for her to do her best with.

Rose did everything he asked. She called the boy and he helped carry the Doctor to his pyre, his final altar. The boy then helped start the fire but took off in a rush, leaving Rose alone to watch. She sang the song he requested over and over again, reading from the letter until she no longer needed its guidance. She wondered if it was a song of passing from his home world, though it could be some redone Ian Dury & the Blockheads song. She didn’t laugh at the thought.

Unknown to Rose, all over the universe, during different points in time, so many different people took a moment to look up. They all focused on one spot, a red dot in the heavens, surrounded by stars. Only some knew why. A dark haired woman began to shed tears, still holding on to her lover’s hand. An old couple of teachers held each other in grief. Different men and women young and old, with either dark or light hair, short or long, all gazed with barely held sorrow. A few aliens and androids alike, continued their vigil, hands over heart. Military men and royal women stopped their duties for only a second, holding still as they felt the need to shift their focus. Even a man who could not die felt compelled to turn his attention to something he could not see. A tin-dog and a dark haired older woman clung to each other as they realized what they were feeling, refusing to look.

When the fire no longer had fuel to continue to burn and the sky was a deep dark red, Rose stopped singing. Her throat was sore and her eyes remained dry. She took a few deep breaths and then blinked a few times forcefully. Turning back to the village, she wanted to put this behind her and find her own Doctor, who was still very much alive.

The other letter rested silently in her front pocket of her jeans, unopened.

It didn’t take her long to find her Doctor. He was scanning the streets with wide eyes, his brown hair wilder than usual. As soon as he caught sight of her he grinned and practically ran to her, letting his brown coat flop in the wind behind him. He grabbed her in a hug and she clung to him desperately.

Obviously, he picked up on her mood immediately.

“Rose, what’s wrong? What happened? Are you hurt?”

She squeezed him tighter, pressing his body as close to her as she could.  “No, I’m fine.”

He released her from the hug but only pulled back slightly, keeping her in his arms. “You were gone for hours! Hours! I looked all over for you! I was starting to think the worst! And you know when I think the worst it is the very, very worst thing anyone has ever thought! Are you sure you’re fine?”

She pulled the corners of her lips up in a smile, though no emotions sprang force to back up the action. “Let’s just go, yeah? Next destination, see something, I don’t know, from the year 3 billion or a planet with birds with no beaks.”

He tightened his face in disgust and Rose felt a genuine smile building. “Why would anyone want to see birds with no beaks? Do you know how unpleasant it is to see birds without their beaks?”

She laughed and hugged him again, as tight as she could. “That’s fine. I don’t care, seeing that’s better than sticking around.”

He pulled back again to take her in and she hoped he wouldn’t press her for more information.

After a long moment he rolled his eyes. “Oh, alright, let’s go find birds without their beaks. I hope I don’t regret this.”

She didn’t look back to that hill with the lonely leafless tree; instead she wrapped her arms around the Doctor as they made their back to the TARDIS, even if it made walking clumsy and awkward.

~VVVVVV~

Unable to shed anymore tears, Rose felt sheltered in her mother’s arms from the pain and the cold wind from sea. She had never felt so hopeless before, so fully bereft from any light against the dark. She had been holding out for months now. She believed that it was only a matter of time before the Doctor would find a way to come and get her. But that didn’t happen and it wouldn’t. She was stuck here, without him.

She now understood why the older Doctor had come to her on that particular day.

Rose then remembered the letter, still tucked away in her front pocket. He had said not to open it until she was on a Norwegian beach with her family. She looked up to see her mother’s worried eyes and then looked passed her shoulder to see her father and Mickey. She looked down to the sand at her feet and then pulled away from the comfort her mother was giving her.

Reaching in to her pocket, she took out the letter and turned away from her family.

_Dearest Rose,_

_I hate that, letter beginners. I could write Dear Rose or Rose or Hello, but none of them fit, not right now and not in the mood that I am in. If you are reading this, which you should be when I had told you to, then we’ve parted ways in a manner I never intended nor wanted. There were times which I had thought to go back and change things. Oh, I’ve been tempted. Losing people I love is not good for my health. But I didn’t write this letter to complain about “what ifs” and letter beginners._

_To the point, I never finished telling you something that day and I realized now, of all possible times, that it was never meant to happen then, or from my lips at that time. It was meant for me to tell you later. And yes, I will tell it to you later. So don’t give up now or ever, because you will, no doubt, have a fantastic life, just like I always wanted. My belief in your strength is the only thing I know of for certain so I know at this moment, with your family beside you, that you will conquer all. Because I was wrong, the beast didn’t lie, you did die that day but you were reborn, better than ever, my valiant Rose._

_All my love,_

_The Doctor_

_P.S. I hate letter enders too. Sincerely is rubbish, With Care is also rubbish, and I honestly had no idea how to end this letter. There are so many things I want to say, but in the end, it was always better with two, especially with you as the other one. Ah, but if I don’t stop now, I never will. Goodbye…_

The last word was written crooked, obviously with a shaky hand. While her tears had stopped moments before now they were falling fast. This was his true Goodbye, this little letter.

Almost clawing her face dry, she regained her equilibrium and with a renewed strength, faced her family again.

There was hope. She was going to see the Doctor again, because if he didn’t or couldn’t find a way, she would. She knew that he knew she would always find a way back to him. It was small, but it was enough. She would continue on. She would not mourn now.

It still wasn’t time to mourn for him.

~VVVVVV~

The shower water was rather loud to her ears, if only because  _he_  was the one taking the first shower in the en suit of the hotel room and Rose was the one waiting near the beds. 

An edgy surge of energy bounced around below her skin. Rose paced the foot of on the beds, occasionally biting her nails. She shook her hands, trying to dispel the jolts of nerves as it assaulted her in waves. 

She hadn’t had any moments to herself since she began using the Dimension Cannon, to really think or ponder what would happen after she found the Doctor.  She didn’t even think that letter would ever become relevant again, that she would most likely wither and die in the Time Lords arms, just like he had done with her. Now that letter meant so much more.

It had really been his last goodbye. She was certain she would never see the Time Lord again. Her chest constricted at the thought but then she felt dizzy because she could hear the water pound against the bathroom tiles and knew he was here.

Of course it was the Doctor, she knew that, from the moment they had both properly explained it to her. Everything she had seen since she meet the Doctor had given her a new set of eyes to view the universe. She’s even loved a man that could change his face. So she knew it was him, both here with her and out there somewhere amongst the stars in another universe.

Anger, hurt, and happiness were waging a gruesome war in her head that left her muscles feeling weakened and her mind hazy. She had never dared to hope that the Doctor could give her a life where they could grow old together. This Doctor could. The other Doctor couldn’t, so that one left without a goodbye. Being the right manipulating bastard that she knew and loved, this Doctor, knowing he would be stuck here, who wanted her with him, told her what she wanted to hear. Thinking back, it was obvious, that she could have gone with the other one, had she only chosen different.

It was that letter that had helped her decide. The letter he had penned said he would tell her. He had told her by giving her everything she could ever hope for but never ever dared by sacrificing everything he needed and wanted. And somewhere out there, six thousand years in his future, he would die, with his head on her lap. 

All her strength finally left and Rose griped the edge of the dresser, leaning into it. She bowed her head and let go of the tears she had been holding on to for so long. After all this time they became a never ending cascade of agony, continuing to flow down her cheeks, congesting her nose, leaving her skin flushed and hot. Her face scrunched up to ease the pain.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she heard the water turn off. She couldn’t stop, not even if she wanted to, the tears were something she could no longer contain.

“Rose?” His voice brought on a new set of tears.

It only took a few delicate and worried moments until she felt his arms around her. She immediately folded into his embrace, letting him support her. He was wearing his maroon tee shirt and blue pinstriped trousers, crushing her to him as if she could melt into his chest. She shook her head, knowing that he was probably thinking all the wrong things. She placed her hands on his torso and pushed back slightly. She couldn’t look at his face, not now, and instead looked down at her jeans pocket as she tried to get the letters out of her pocket. It took her three hasty times with fumbling fingers to finally yank the pieces of paper out and present them to him.

“Read ‘em. I don’t care.” She couldn’t tell if he was taking the letters from her or not since she still refused to look him in the face. “Go on, just read ’em.”

As soon as she felt the papers slip from her fingers her tears started again. She buried her face in the nook between his shoulder and upper body, burrowing herself in him as best she could. He continued to hold her with one arm fully and tightly wrapped around her.

He was silent and still as he read. Rose thought she felt him stiffen at one point and, then, all of sudden he let out a low chuckle. She heard paper tumble on air like the letters had been tossed over a shoulder and she felt his other arm wrap around her.

“I’m sorry.” He said with a solemn, whispering voice, his lips just grazing her ear.

He continued to hold her, not saying a word or moving an inch, as she continued to mourn. The only thought she could hear, echoing in the expanse of her own mind’s universe, was:  _he’s dead_.

The sunlight that had been barely seeping through the window finally vanished before her cheeks were dry. The Doctor had kept calm and motionless from the moment his arms had locked in a comforting and secure hold around her body. Once she had stopped trembling from the anguish, he began to gently rub her back. Slowly he shifted his weight and turned his head to rest on top of hers. The small gestures helped shift her mood and pushed her onward.

Finally ready to look at his face and meet whatever awkward expression would greet her, Rose tilted her head upwards only to find warmth in his bright eyes and small smile.

Taking a step back out of his arms, she looked at her feet, then back to him. “Thanks, I guess I needed that.”

“Oh, definitely, been holding that in, for what, years? Since we went to Rinoon?” His voice was still deep and low, and though his words sounded patronizing, she knew he understood.

“Suppose I did, yeah.”

He ducked his head and met her eyes with his own. He placed his hands on her waist, pulling her close to him. “Rose Tyler, you never cease to amaze me. Thank you, so, so much. I couldn’t think of a better way to go than that.”

She was beginning to feel another wave of tears build, but her eyes stung at the thought of releasing anymore. “It’s just, it’s so final, now, that he’s gone, that you’re…”

“No, no, no, don’t say it like that. I’m still here and I’m still me and we have the rest of our lives together.” He looked away bashfully, looking far more insecure than he should. “I mean, well, you know what I mean.”

Trying to regain her composure, she placed a finger under her nose to hide a sniffle. “Why’d you laugh?”

“Eehh, I could read between the lines, must’ve known I’d read those letters sometime. Plus the choice of song was rather fitting for me.”

“What was the song?” She asked before he could even finish his sentence.

“Rock-a-bye Baby in Gallifreyan.”

“Seriously? You had me sing Rock-a-bye Baby at your funeral or whatever that was called?”

“Fitting, don’t you think?!” He said with a slight grin, mischief clear on his face. She could barely see the tears gathered on his lower eye lids.

She returned the grin with a hard sigh, feeling entirely incredulous with this new information. “God, that is so daft. So like you.”

“Come here.” He pulled her into warm, soft but wonderfully tight hug.

Rose couldn’t tell how many minutes passed. She didn’t want to move and was very willing to just fall asleep on her feet wrapped in his arms. Once she pressed an ear to his chest to listen to his single heartbeat he began to talk again.

“If it’s alright with you, I think the best thing we can both do now, in light of this new information and to honor the wishes of another me,” he pulled back and they stared at each other once again, “is to have a fantastic life, or lives in this case. Let’s do that for me, hmm?”

She smiled and when she did she felt lighter than she had in years. “Doesn’t sound so bad.” Rose reached up to cup his face, resting her palm on his cheek ever so delicately. She made her decision. She would definitely have a fantastic life, with the Doctor beside her. “Right, let’s do just that.”

~VVVVVV~

In a universe that didn’t have zeppelins buzzing around in the sky, somewhere on the streets of London, weathered and beaten down from centuries of decay and the course of nature, was a faded blue Police Box. No one was able to move it or open its doors. The happy and quiet neighborhood that sheltered the Police Box didn’t care though, because for some odd reason, they felt protected by its presence. It was their guardian angel. And it would be for years to come. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> No beta, all mistakes are mine. Does not adhere to Moffat canon.


End file.
